


Love is a Kind of Magic

by amageish



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Non-Despair (Dangan Ronpa), Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Alternate Universe - Talentswap (Dangan Ronpa), Comedy, F/F, Fluff, Fluff Seasoned with the Tiniest Bit of Angst For Flavour, Misunderstandings, Multi, Tsumiki Mikan Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-06
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-18 04:20:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,480
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29237451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amageish/pseuds/amageish
Summary: Komaru Naegi smiled, standing in the quad of Hope’s Peak University. She was going to see a performance for the ages. Hope’s Peak was doing a talent show and it was featuring the one, and the only: Sayaka Maizono, the Ultimate Magician....This is a University AU, a Soulmates AU, and a Talentswap AU all at once. Inspired by Tokomaru week, but I am a slow writer.
Relationships: Akamatsu Kaede/Harukawa Maki/Momota Kaito/Saihara Shuichi, Fukawa Touko/Naegi Komaru
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9





	Love is a Kind of Magic

Komaru Naegi smiled, standing in the quad of Hope’s Peak University.

She was… admittedly confused about how she got there. Sure, she was let on campus as a guest of her brother - her _wonderful_ brother, Makoto, who she is very proud of - but her brother was: (i) nowhere to be found and (ii) not forthcoming about the nature of his inclusion at the school.

Hope’s Peak only accepted people based on their talents (with one annual expectation, but the Ultimate Luck of Makoto’s year was a blonde man - a not-especially-humble blonde man, based on what Komaru remembered of his acceptance speech)... and her brother, to her knowledge, was perfectly ordinary. Whenever she asked her brother about the details of the enrollment, he’d either deflect or just start stammering. 

However, for this day, the _why_ didn’t matter. As she was going to see a performance for the ages. Hope’s Peak was doing a talent show and it was featuring the one, and the only: Sayaka Maizono, the Ultimate Magician.

Komaru was a big fan of Sayaka’s work. Her skill at sleight-of-hand was unparalleled and she always performed with a smile. Her life story, an only child who got into magic to make friends and connect with an audience, touched Komaru’s heart and made her even more invested in Sayaka’s success.

So, nothing could stop Komaru from enjoying her day at Hope’s Peak. Who cares where Makoto was? She was certain she could meet him before the Talent Show, at least. So, she would just wander around - might as well enjoy the campus while you can, right?

At which point she walked right in front of the path of a rocket, crashing from the sky and set off a mild explosion in the middle of the sidewalk.

“I told you this would happen!” a short woman in pigtails declared.

The larger, buffer, man who launched the rocket just laughed. “Look, Maki Roll, you gotta believe that the impossible is possible!”

“And _you_ have to believe _me_ when I tell you that something is going to go wrong!”

“The Ultimate Mechanic isn’t going to let _a_ _nything_ stop him from tinkering. Not even the advise of his girlfriend!”

“YOUR GIRLFRIEND IS THE ULTIMATE CLAIRVOYANT.” 

Komaru, a little bit dazed, stared at the duo.

“Um. Hi. For the record, I’m okay!”

The bickering couple both stopped arguing to turn to look at Komaru.

The black-haired girl walked up to her, offering her hand out for a handshake. 

“Apologies for the idiot. I’m Maki Harukawa, the Ultimate Clairvoyant. My _boyfriend_ , unfortunately, is over there and is the Ultimate Mechanic…”

Komaru flashed a polite smile, accepting the handshake. “Nice to meet you! I’m Komaru Naegi, just an ordinary girl and a visitor.”

Upon hearing Komaru’s name, Maki’s face quickly fell. She dropped Komaru’s hand and pushed her boyfriend towards her, scowling angrily.

“Why are you just standing there? You almost blew up Makoto’s sister and aren’t going to apologize? Do you _want_ to die?”

Kaito began to stammer nervously. “Well, um, Miss Naegi, we, uh, didn’t mean any harm.”

Komaru blinked back in confusion. “It’s okay? I’m okay. Are… are… you two okay?”

“We’re fine.” Maki replied, curtly. “If you’re fine.”

“I’m more than fine, honestly.” Komaru said, trying to regain some sense of composure. “The showcase is today! I’m so excited.”

“Oh, you’re going there?” Kaito responded. “Excited to see Hiyoko? I know we’ll have a lot of guests coming for her.”

“The Ultimate Pop Sensation is quite a… character if you know her.” Maki added, sounding a bit more venomous than she intended.

“Oh, no.” Komaru replied. “I’m excited for Sayaka myself!”

“The magician?” Maki replied, confused.

“THE MAGICIAN!” Kaito exclaimed, excitedly throwing an arm around Komaru. “Magic is great.”

“You like magic too?” Komaru excitedly.

“Of course I do!” Kaito replied. “Magic makes the impossible possible! It’s a reminder to shoot for the stars and to never give up!”

“Or it’s a reminder of the efficiency of lying to people.” Maki interjected.

“Oh, hush Maki Roll. Say, Komaru, would you be interested in… meeting Sayaka?”

Komaru’s eyes lit up. “Is… is that an option? Do you know her?”

“I don’t know her personally, but my soulmate works with her!”

Komaru turned to Maki and beamed. “YOU WORK WITH SAYAKA MAIZANO!”

Maki just rolled her eyes and rolled up her sleeve. “No. I don’t. I just also happen to have three soulmates; one of whom is bearable.”

Kaito, seemingly immune to Maki’s insults, grabbed her wrist and pushed it into Komaru’s face, proudly showing off the names written on it.

“See that name, Komaru? ‘Shuichi Saihara’? Well, he’s going to be your ticket to meeting Sayaka. He’s the Ultimate Breeder and he’s backstage tonight, managing her birds for her bird routine.”

“She’ll be performing Negaigoto Ensemble?! Tonight?! In-person?!”

“Wow. You are really just the Ultimate Fangirl…” Maki sighed, wriggling her hand free of Kaito’s grip. “Look, we’ll be heading to the stage area early to meet our _other_ other soulmate. Want to come with?”

“Of course!” Komaru nodded excitedly. “I can’t believe I’m going to meet Sayaka Maizono… How could this day get any better?”

…

It didn’t take long for Komaru’s journey across campus to be interrupted once more, albeit this time with a human collapsed on the sidewalk, her skirt flipped upwards exposing her delicates.

“Are you okay?” Komaru asked, offering a hand to help the woman up.

The purple-haired woman ignored Komaru’s question and her hand, simply standing up herself and pulling out a notepad. Muttering to herself, she scribbled on the notepad and smacked the resulting note square on the middle of her forehead.

Maki rolled her eyes and ripped the sticky note off of the woman’s head. “Come on, Mikan. That’s unnecessary.”

“But people who break the rules need to be disciplined!”

“Yeah, but Mikan… If you really wanted to stop giving yourself demerits for ‘indecent exposure,’ then maybe you should begin by wearing leggings? Or, you know, pants?”

Mikan looked around uncomfortably. Maki sighed with frustration. Komaru decided to interject.

“Hello! I’m Komaru. I’m sorry that you fell. I hope you are okay.”

“O-oh!” Mikan gasped in shock. “Hello Komaru! I am Mikan Tsumuki, the Ultimate Moral Compass. Are you a new student here? I’m so sorry for not meeting you earlier. Feel free to ask me about any rules and regulations on campus. It can be pretty overwhelming for new students, but the manual is actually very well-organized when you -”

“Oh, no, it’s fine!” Komaru interrupted. “I’m not a new student. I’m just Makoto’s sister.”

Mikan paled. “M-Makoto’s sister? I fell in front of Makoto’s sister? Please, accept my apologies. My s-soulmate and my t-therapist told me I shouldn’t offer i-intimate favours as apologies anymore, but I’m sure they’d understand if I made an exception given the circumstances. Would you like me to -”

“Woah, uh, you most certainly do not need to do that? No offense was taken. You just fell!”

Mikan smiled. “Thank you! You are very kind, Komaru.”

“Actually though, there is one thing you could tell me, if you’re willing.”

“Oh, anything! Is it about campus? You know, I know the entire lay-”

“It’s about my brother.”

An awkward pause.

“W-what do you want to know about him?” Mikan replied.

“Do you know why he’s here?” Komaru questioned. “He’s never even explained his talent to me. I always assumed he was the Ultimate Lucky Student of his year, but the internet says otherwise.”

Another awkward pause.

“I love my brother, of course.” Komaru continued. “He’s wonderful. I’m sure he deserves to be here. I'm just confused why he hasn't told me… He's usually so kind and forthcoming!”

Another, awkwarder pause.

Kaito broke the silence. “You don’t know your brother’s talent?”

“Nope.”

Maki sighed. “Well, we don’t either.”

“You don’t?”

“Definitely not!” Mikan shrieked.

“As you’ve all seemed pretty aware of him…” 

“I don’t know what you mean by that.” Kaito replied.

“None of us are in his class. So, no. We do not know.”

Komaru sighed. “I’m sorry for asking then? You all seem very... tense now?”

“Don’t apologize!” Mikan said, visibly uncomfortable. “It’s fine. I, uh, have to go though. And do… things! Bye!”

Mikan ran away, before falling on her face a second time. She resisted giving herself a demerit though, which Maki quietly smiled at.

“Let’s keep going.” Kaito said, smiling.

…

Upon arrival at the auditorium, a voice instantly called out towards the trio.

“Maki Roll! Kaito! New friend! Welcome!”

A concession worker beamed a bright smile towards Komaru, who gave a wave in reply.

“Welcome to Kaede’s Candy Corner!” the worker said, eagerly shaking Komaru’s hand. “I’m Kaede Akamatsu, Ultimate Confectioner. Would you like to try some samples?”

“Hey, you didn’t introduce me! Your loyal assistant.” 

Kaede looked like she was actively under duress. “And this is Aoi Asahina. The Ultimate Donut-Eater.”

“Hey! That’s not my talent! Just my hobby!”

“Well, given how much of my stock you’ve costumed thus far, you could have fooled me.”

“Eating all of my girlfriend’s confections again, Hina?” Maki interjected. 

“Oh! Maki! I would never. I just, uh, am doing research on the cultural significance of donut flavours! You know, food tells you a lot about a given culture. It implies what types of ingredients the chefs have had access to.”

“Yeah, and what ingredients I’m going to need a lot more of…” Kaede sighed.

“Look, Kaede! I’m sure Hina was just helping you in her own way!” Kaito said, with a smile.

Kaede glanced up at him. “You’re lucky I love you, you know…”

“Maki Roll tells me that enough for the two of you.” Kaito turned to Komaru. “So, welcome to the auditorium! The magic will be happening behind those doors in a short 20 minutes! Literally!”

“Oh! Are you excited for the magic show? Well, then you should take a marzipan carrot!” Kaede said, earlier frustration starting to fade. “Please, have it on the house.”

“You know, Kaede, you’re not going to make any money if you keep on giving away candy for free…” Maki added.

“Maki Roll, the point of making candy isn’t money! The reward is in the excited smiles and the light in people’s eyes as they take their first bite!”

“See?” Hina interjected. “I’m rewarding and appreciating Kaede’s hard work.”

“I said their first bite, not their one hundred thousandth.”

Hina grabbed another donut regardless and Maki just shook in her.

Komaru smiled. “Well, it’s nice to meet the two of you! I’m Komaru Naegi.”

“Oh, Makoto’s sister!” Hina said with a smile. “I’m in his class. He must be a good brother to have.”

“Yeah, he is!” Komaru replied. “Actually, I was wonder-”

“Say, Hina!” Kaito interrupted. “I think I saw Sakura while on the way here. You should go and find her if you want to sit together for the show.” 

“My beautiful Princess! Sorry, Kaede, Kaito’s right! I’ll be back after the show, okay?”

Kaede politely smiled. “Sure! Say hi to your soulmate for me, okay?”

“I will! See you, everyone!” Hina said, running away with another donut in her hand.

Kaede took a deep breath. “Sorry about that. She’s a nice girl, but a bit draining.”

“Not the kind of person I’d expect for the Ultimate Anthropologist, but she clearly has passion for her work.” Kaito suggested.

“For food and her girlfriend, at least.” Maki replied, deadpan.

“Hey, Sakura’s lovely.” Kaede responded.

Komaru nodded politely. “Hey, uh, can someone point me to the restroom? I don’t want to leave my seat for a second once the show begins!”

“Oh, it’s just down the hall!” Kaede indicated. “You can’t miss it.”

“Perfect!” Komaru replied. “Thanks.”

“I can take you, if you want?” Maki suggested.

“Nah, stay with your soulmates. Catch up! Honestly, you’ve been enough help already.”

...

Komaru sighed, washing her hands. Hope’s Peak was truly a place with a lot of colourful characters, but she couldn’t understand why people were treating her so… kindly. Sure, it seems like everyone is friendly, but… They also appear scared of her.

A laugh comes from behind her. “Well, aren’t you a cutie!”

Komaru spun around, coming face to face with a camera lens.

“Smile!” the voice said, before the flash went off.

“Um. It’s not polite to photograph people in the bathroom, you know! I mean, I’m just washing my hands, so it’s technically fine, but-”

“Oh, don’t worry. I’ve taken plenty of photos of people in worse circumstances across my life!” the woman burst out into laughter a second time. “This is just for my _personal_ memories as you’re so cute!”

“Very forward of you…”

The woman laughed a third time in their one, brief, exchange. “Look, cutie. I’m a once-in-a-lifetime encounter for you, okay? Don’t stress about me. You’ll be fine.”

“Uh, oooookay. I am going to go back to my friends now!”

“Oh, friends! How social of you. Miss Morose would be so jealous.”

“Sure.” Komaru replied. “Bye!”

“So long cutie! Don’t go forgetting me, you hear!”

…

Komaru walked up to Kaede’s confectionery booth, face still frozen with confusion.

“Is… everything okay, Komaru?” Kaede questioned, setting up a display of pretzels shaped like piano keys.

“Yeah! I just had a… weird encounter in the bathroom.”

“Weird how? Are you okay?” Kaito interjected.

“I’m perfectly fine. There was just a woman who took my photo…”

“Okay, do you need us to punch her?”

“No, no! I was decent. She just was… intense. She had a long tongue and frazzled hair. Do you know who she is?”

“Long… tongue? Doesn’t describe anyone I know…” Kaede replied, confused.

"Most people at Hope's Peak are pretty well-groomed to, with a few exceptions."

"Hm." Komaru said. "Maybe she was a guest then... She did have a camera on her, so maybe she was a tourist?"

"Oh, the talent show has attracted a lot of guests to campus for sure." Kaede said, continuing to stack a series of baked goods. "The diverse number of performers has gotten people coming from all over the world! Whether you're interested in Kyoko's dancing or Gundham's modelling, you'll come to this event."

"That makes sense... I mean, I'm here. I hope she doesn't use her camera during the show though. I don't want Sayaka's performances to be ruined by flash photography exposing anything..."

"I wouldn't worry about it." Kaito said, smiling. "The Ultimate Boxer will be on security detail and trust me: Ryoma is _really_ strong for his size."

"Ah... I guess I shouldn't worry then... I guess she just got in my face and captured my attention."

“Could that have anything to do with the name on your wrist?” Maki suggested.

Komaru laughed. “Sorr Maki, but I don’t have any name on my wrist. I don’t have a soulma - holy shit.”

Written on her list in gold letters was the name “Toko Fukawa.”

**Author's Note:**

> Who is the mysterious woman in the bathroom? What is Makoto's talent? Will Komaru meet her mysterious soulmate? How many more random characters will I namedrop? Post your guesses in the comments below and find out next time!
> 
> This work should only have one more chapter, but I will write a couple overdue other fic updates first...


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